'Six plus Two' group requests relief for Mazar-e Sharif

UNITED NATIONS (CNN) --Formally acknowledging that the control of Mazar-e Sharif has shifted from the Taliban to the United Front, representatives of Afghanistan's neighboring nations on Saturday asked for the "immediate return" of international aid to the northern Afghan city.

Following a meeting at the United Nations, the group, formed in 1997 to find a political settlement to the conflict in Afghanistan, also called for the application of international humanitarian law in Mazar-e Sharif.

The "Six Plus Two" group consists of Afghanistan's six neighboring nations -- Iran, Pakistan, China, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan -- plus Russia and the United States.

The foreign ministers for those nations will gather Monday in a meeting to be chaired by U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan.